Barcelona president Joan Laporta has launched a scathing attack on the Spanish national team, labelling them “reckless” for their handling of Lamine Yamal and Gavi’s injuries.
Yamal suffered a hamstring injury during Spain’s Nations League clash with Denmark, while midfielder Gavi continues to recover from an anterior cruciate ligament blow sustained against Georgia almost a year ago.
Laporta expressed his discontent to Barca One: “In the case of Lamine, he is a very skilful player, who suffers many injuries. It was reckless for him to stay for the next match and I didn’t like that they tried to convince him to play. We have made arrangements and we must defend our interests. We took action and they understood our approach and that of the player. Lamine is young and has a lot of personality and he explained the situation he was in.”
Regarding Gavi, Laporta added: “I forgot to mention that Gavi was injured with the national team. If he hadn’t played in the two games, he might not have gotten injured. The good news is that now we have to slow him down. He’s going all out in training.”
Laporta advocates for changing the rules to prioritise players’ physical and mental well-being. He added: “Perhaps we will have to unite the clubs. This rule has to be changed. If the player has the freedom to go or not, they will first look at his physique, without having to put aside the will to go. Having the freedom allows you to avoid it if you are in a situation of overload. The general principle is to go, but there are exceptions for the physical and mental health of the players. Above all to protect the players.”
Spain boss Luis de la Fuente has denied overplaying Yamal, but the club-versus-country debate rages on.
Image Credit: Getty Images Sport
[…] interest in the duo for Barca remains, despite Lavia’s recent move to Stamford […]